Feeding my rose anemone

[ReefTank1]

i have a rose anemone that lost all of its colour in a heat wave, it is hosting a maroon clown. I've heard some people say i should feed and some people say that i shouldnt.
the people who said i shouldnt said that anemones waste 90% of the food you give them and that the clown will feed it enough.

Should i keep feeding him silversides once a week and also how long does it take for it to regain the orange colour, the tips are still orenge and purple

thanks

[nickterp]

What kind of lighting do you have on the tank? The lighting is a big factor in the anemones recovery. Also, are you able to keep tank conditions stable from now on? How long have you had the anemone?

Feeding a silverside once or a couple times a week is absolutely fine. I would definitely NOT rely on the clown to feed anemone for you.

I haven't seen much evidence to support the idea that feeding an anemone just once or twice a week could be BAD for an anemone. Usually those who have success without feeding have very intense lighting and a healthy anemone. I would recommend supplementing with food for now.

Good luck!

[reefnetworth]

i feed one silverside a week with detachment just behind the intestines. or as i call it "loose the tail". the skull and intestines are very important for nourishment. depending on size of yours it may consume a whole one. mine will not. my clowns will pick at any piece not ingested in about 20-30 min. the small pieces float away and may contaminate the water. i rely solely on natural/biological filtering, any non-ingested food makes me nervous.
also, i dont always agree with lighting concerns. i have a green BTA in another tank that prefers the lighly shaded area's. its pretty much the anemone's call. they will go where they want and thats just the habits of anemones. good luck and as always, REEF-ON!

[RokleM]

I'm not sure who gave you that advice, but I think just about everyone here will tell you to feed it at least once a week (that's just normal healthy behavior). I do every 3 days. Soak the silversides in some nutrients before, and you will probably see some changes quickly.

[ReefTank1]

My lighting is 10k 150w coralifes with 96w actinics, the anemone is near the bottom of the tank which is about 2 feet, the bulbs should be changes soon as well.

thanks for your replies

[catdoc]

I'm recovering a bleached rbta myself. I attempted the "just leave it where it wants to be and don't mess with it" method and was seeing it only shrink away. The poor little thing was down to just bumps for tentacles when I started to feed it teensy little pieces of silversides (about 1/4"). Once it started eating the silversides, it immediately started making slow baby steps of improvement. It's now taking larger (1/2 to 3/4") pieces, its tentacles have bubbled up, and it's about 20% pink.

Maybe a healthy, well-colored anemone would be ok without regular feeding, but if it's bleached I'd highly recommend feeding it and feeding it often.